Bismillah. And Umm Ibraheem is trying really hard to get back up on her feet…. 🙂

So one of my more favorite posts 🙂 I love love love love love the sahabah. L.O.V.E. Seriously. I wish I could meet them. I’d melt from the humiliation of my deeds, probably. Which should make me wonder at how we should feel before Allah.

‘Abdullah ibn Mas’ood: Legs Like Uhud

Abu Abdul Rahman Abdullah ibn Masood (d. 32 A.H./652 C.E.), known as ibn Umm Abd, was from a poor family. If there is ever a mention of just Abdullah, then it is a reference to Abdullah ibn Masood. He was the sixth person to embrace Islam. His mother was also a very early convert.

His story of meeting the Prophet sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam was pretty amazing. Ibn Mas’ud related:

I was tending the sheep of Uqbah bin Abi Mu’ayt when the Messenger of Allah sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam and Abu Bakr met me and they said, “O boy! Do you have (any sheep with) milk?” I replied, “Yes, but I have been entrusted with it (i.e, it is not mine).’ Then he said, “Do you have any young sheep that has not mated?” So I bought to him the sheep and he massaged its udders and milk flowed from it and he collected it into a bowl and drank it and Abu Bake also quenched his thirst. Then he said to the udders of the sheep: “Cease!” and it ceased.

Ahmad added to the narration of the story: “Thereafter, I came to him and said, ‘O Messenger of Allah sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, teach me these words.’ He rubbed my head and said, ‘You are a well-mannered boy.’ And yet another narration added: “So I accepted Islam and came to him thereafter.”

Virtues

Ibn Mas’ood had the advantage of being very close to the Prophet sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam and therefore was aware of some of his personal aspects unknown to others.

He related 848 hadith, but he was best known for his knowledge of the Qur’an. The Prophet sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam said: “Take the Qur’an from four: Abdullah (i.e. Ibn Masood), Salim the client of Abu Hudhaifa, Muaadh ibn Jabal and Ubayy ibn Kaab.”

The Prophet salallahu ‘alayhi wasallam also said: “Whoever loves to recite the Qur’an fresh, just as it was revealed, then he should copy the recitation of Ibn Umm ‘Abd.”

Legs Like Uhud

‘Ali ibn Abi Talib said: The Messenger of Allah commanded Ibn Mas’ood, so he climbed a tree to get something from the tree top for the Prophet sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam. While climbing, his legs became exposed and the Companions saw how thin they were and this caused them to laugh. The Messenger of Allah sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam said:

“What are you laughing at? At the legs of ‘Abdullah that will heavier on the scale on the Day of Qiyaamah than the weight of mount Uhud?”

This sahabah was a scholar of Islam and I wish I had loads of time to go through my notes and write up stories and hadith about him, but unfortunately, trying to research the sahabah’s lives is holding me back from posting more, so we’re going to power through this for now 🙂

Quotable Quotes

“Whoever relies on this world will be disappointed.” (Part of a very lengthy quote…But I loved that bit 🙂 )

“Whoever hankers after greatness, Allah will denigrate him. Whoever lowers himself in humility, Allah will elevate him. The King has His touch, and so does shaytaan. The touch of the King is resumption with goodness and submission to the truth. If you notice that (in you), then give praise to Allah. The call of shaytaan is resumption of evil and denial of the truth. When you notice that, seek refuge with Allah.”

“The most hateful sight to me is a man having free time yet he is neither involved in the work of dunya (world) nor that of the Hereafter.”

“While you are in salat, you are knocking at the gate of the King. It is for the one who knocks that the gate is opened.”

“By Allah besides whom there is no deity worthy of worship, there is nothing on the surface of the earth more deserving of long term imprisonment than the tongue.”

“Whoever of you is able to hide his treasures in the heavens, where worms cannot eat it and thieves cannot steal it, then let him do so, for the soul of man is forever connected to his treasures.”

And with that wimpy piece, I will have to mention a great giant of Islam 😦

One Response to The Narrators: ‘Abdullah ibn Mas’ood

Beautiful comments on one of the most scholarly books written, in english, in our time. I like how you ignore the detailed conversations of the scholars and just give a general idea of the main point in each discussion. Only Allaah can truly reward you…it must be difficult to be a mother and a student of knowledge.